Labour Legislation Compliance within the Small-Enterprise Sector

2020 ◽  
Vol 43 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nkhuliseni Elijah Luvhengo ◽  
Adele Thomas
Keyword(s):  
South African ◽  
Negative Impact ◽  
Small Enterprise ◽  
Small Enterprises ◽  
Employment Relations ◽  
Labour Law ◽  
African Government ◽  
Labour Relations ◽  
Labour Legislation ◽  
Conditions Of Employment

The purpose of this study was to investigate how compliance with labour law—particularly the Labour Relations Act (LRA) and the Basic Conditions of Employment Act (BCEA)—could be promoted as sound governance practice. The study adopted a qualitative approach, and eight experts in the field were purposefully sampled and interviewed. The results suggested that small-enterprise owners were not knowledgeable about labour laws, hence their inability to comply with them. It was found that owners experienced labour laws as cumbersome, and their forced implementation had a negative impact on governance. It is suggested that different legal requirements be applied to the small-enterprise sector. Guidelines are proposed which legislators could use to assist the South African government in modifying the requirements of the LRA and the BCEA in respect of small enterprises. This study fills a gap in existing literature on small enterprises and governance in South Africa in the field of employment relations.

scholarly journals The Right to Strike and Replacement Labour: South African Practice Viewed from an International Law Perspective

2018 ◽  
Vol 21 ◽  
pp. 1-34
Author(s):  
Stefan Van Eck ◽  
Tungamirai Kujinga
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
International Law ◽  
South African ◽  
Labour Law ◽  
International Labour Organisation ◽  
Labour Relations ◽  
Essential Services ◽  
The Republic ◽  
Labour Legislation ◽  
The Right

South Africa is a member of the International Labour Organisation (hereafter the ILO), an establishment that sets international labour law standards through its conventions, recommendations and expert supervisory committees. Also, South African courts have an obligation to interpret labour provisions in accordance with international law and customs. This paper examines whether by way of the Labour Relations Act of 1995 (hereafter the LRA) the current regulation of both the right to strike and the use of replacement labour during strikes falls within the ambits of internationally and constitutionally acceptable labour norms. Strike action constitutes a temporary and concerted withdrawal of work. On the other hand, replacement labour maintains production and undermines the effect of the withdrawal of labour. Consequently, the ILO views the appointment of strike-breakers during legal strikes in non-essential services as a violation of the right to organise and collective bargaining, and in a number of countries replacement labour is prohibited. The Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, 1996 enshrines every worker's right to strike and the LRA gives effect to this right. However, the foundation of this right is ostensibly brought into question by the LRA in as far as it permits employers to make use of replacement labour during strike action. This article investigates whether replacement labour undermines the right to strike in South Africa and considers to what extent labour legislation may be misaligned with international norms. In conclusion the research makes findings and proposes alternatives that may be considered to resolve this seemingly skewed situation.    

scholarly journals Labour law defects and means of overcoming them

2021 ◽  
pp. 314-322
Author(s):  
Yana Simutina
Keyword(s):  
Law Enforcement ◽  
Supreme Court ◽  
Negative Impact ◽  
Labor Law ◽  
Labour Law ◽  
Labour Relations ◽  
Legal Norms ◽  
The Supreme Court ◽  
Labour Legislation ◽  
Litmus Test

Introduction. Defects in labour law are certainly a negative phenomenon. They can be used by unscrupulous employees or employers, violating the rights and legitimate interests of the other party to the employment relationship. In addition, defects in legal norms create obstacles to proper law enforcement, which, in turn, threatens to misinterpret them and is also the cause of conflicting law enforcement practices. The aim of the article is to clarify the general characteristics of defects in labor law, their negative impact on law enforcement practice, as well as to outline some ways to prevent and overcome defects in labor law. Results. The article is devoted to the study of defects in labour law, their varieties and characteristics. The author's attention focuses on the issue of the negative impact of defects in labor law, in particular, law enforcement practice. The most common defects in labour law are analyzed. The necessity of legislative consolidation of the principle of good faith of the parties to labour relations in labour legislation is justified. The Supreme Court plays a significant role in identifying and overcoming defects in labour law at the stage of law enforcement in labor disputes. The existing court practice is a kind of litmus test of which norms of the current labour legislation are defective, ineffective, ambiguous, etc. In this regard, it seems appropriate when finalizing the draft of the new Labour Code of Ukraine to pay more attention to case law and analyze the legal position of the Supreme Court in disputes arising from labor relations, in order to identify the most common defects of labour law and prevent them at the rule stage. Conclusions. The defects in labour legislation can be prevented both at the stage of adoption of a normative legal act by formulating the idea of the draft law, its concept, and carrying out its proper examination. At the stage of legal implementation, defects can be eliminated by introducing amendments and additions to the normative act and/or by eliminating defective labour law norms. It is possible to overcome defects in the process of law enforcement with the help of methods of interpretation, application of analogy of law and analogy of lex.

scholarly journals Analysing the Onus Issue in Dismissals Emanating from the Enforcement of Unilateral Changes to Conditions of Employment

2017 ◽  
Vol 14 (7) ◽  
pp. 146
Author(s):  
Riaz Ismail ◽  
Clarence Itumeleng Tshoose
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
South African ◽  
Labour Relations ◽  
Appeal Court ◽  
The Core ◽  
The United Kingdom ◽  
Mutual Interest ◽  
Core Section ◽  
The Right ◽  
Conditions Of Employment

The main objective of this article is to analyse the issue of onus emanating from the enforcement of unilateral changes to conditions of employment. At the heart of the controversy that has faced the Labour Appeal Court was how to interpret dismissals that appear to be based on operational requirements, and yet at the same time, such dismissals also appear to have the effect of compelling an employee to accept a demand in respect of a matter of mutual interest between the employer and the employee. The core section in the Labour Relations Act 66 of 1995 relating to disputes of this nature is section 187(1)(c) of the Act, and the central enquiry to such disputes is whether they are automatically unfair or operationally justifiable. The fine line that determines whether a dismissal is acceptable or not merits an analysis of the overall onus that faces an employer and employee. This analysis is the focus of the article, which deals predominantly with procedural issues. The issue relating to the promotion of collective bargaining will be assessed against the right to dismiss, based on an analysis of the situation in South Africa, and a brief comparison with the situations in the United Kingdom and Canada. Thereafter, recommendations are made to the South African legislature.

scholarly journals BARGAINING IN BAD FAITH IN SOUTH AFRICAN LABOUR LAW: AN ANTIDOTE?

Obiter ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 37 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Fiona Leppan ◽  
Avinash Govindjee ◽  
Ben Cripps
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Collective Bargaining ◽  
South African ◽  
Good Faith ◽  
Bad Faith ◽  
Labour Law ◽  
International Labour Organisation ◽  
Labour Legislation ◽  
The Many ◽  
Labour Organisation

While good-faith bargaining is recognized in many overseas jurisdictions and by the International Labour Organisation, such a duty has not been incorporated in South African labour legislation. Given the many recent examples of labour unrest in South Africa, it is time to consider whether there should be a duty to bargain in good faith when taking part in collective bargaining. Recognizing such a duty would arguably benefit both employers and employees and South Africa as a whole.

scholarly journals The Influence of Atypical Employment on Socioeconomic Development

2020 ◽  
Vol 16 (1) ◽  
pp. 43-50
Author(s):  
Nikita L. Lyutov
Keyword(s):  
Market Segmentation ◽  
Socioeconomic Development ◽  
Employment Relations ◽  
Negative Consequences ◽  
Labour Law ◽  
Labour Market Segmentation ◽  
The Subject ◽  
Labour Legislation ◽  
Atypical Employment ◽  
Positive Effect

The Subject of the Study. The article deals with an issue of impact of atypical employment on the socioeconomic development on micro- and macro levels. The Purpose of the Study is to discover the links between the introduction of atypical forms of employment and socioeconomic development. The Main Theoretical and Empirical Aspects of Study: as the implementation of various forms of atypical employment is one of the aspects of flexibility in employment relations’ regulation, the author starts with a general analysis of impact of general flexibility of employment on the economy. This section of the article contains the conclusion that a thesis about positive effect of labour law flexibility on the economic effectiveness remains unproven; – the second part of the article contains an analysis of the relations between the specific forms of atypical employment and the state of economy. The conclusion has been made that ill-considered implementation of such forms into the labour legislation leads to such negative consequences to the economy as the labour market segmentation and volatility, rising incomes gap and lowering the purchasing power. – the thesis is made that Russian labour legislation modification in the field of atypical employment development is only acceptable with a view to make the already existing atypical employment come out of informal sector, and in a way that takes into account the interests of both parties of the employment relationship.

Social Harmony and the Small Firm: A Reappraisal

1988 ◽  
Vol 36 (1) ◽  
pp. 114-132 ◽  
Author(s):  
David M. Goss
Keyword(s):  
Small Firm ◽  
Small Firms ◽  
Industrial Relations ◽  
Small Enterprises ◽  
Employment Relations ◽  
Labour Relations ◽  
Trade Unionism ◽  
Starting Point ◽  
The Media ◽  
Depth Interviews

Government, academics and the media have, over the past decade, entered fully into the spirit of ‘small business revival’. Many of the contributions to this debate, however, have taken for granted the nature of small firm employment relations. It has frequently been remarked that workers in a small firms behave in ways more compatible with the goals and interests of their employers than employees in large firms. Thus, industrial relations are assumed to be more harmonious. In support of this assertion attention is usually drawn to the relative infrequency of conflict and industrial disputes, and the absence of militant trade unionism as an indication of the small firm workers' greater commitment to the goals of the enterprise and the interests of the employer (Ingham 1970). This paper suggests that such assumptions are unwarranted and provide a potentially misleading starting point for studies of employment relations in small firms. Data from a small number of in-depth interviews with small firm personnel is used to illustrate some of the complex and contradictory processes through which capital-labour relations may be constituted within small enterprises.

scholarly journals DETERMINING THE THRESHOLD FOR ORGANIZATIONAL RIGHTS: THE LEGAL QUAGMIRE FACING MINORITY UNIONS RESOLVED – South African Post Office v Commissioner Nowosenetz No (2013) 2 BLLR 216 (LC)

Obiter ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 34 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Clarence Tshoose
Keyword(s):  
Collective Bargaining ◽  
South African ◽  
Trade Union ◽  
Trade Unions ◽  
Post Office ◽  
Labour Relations ◽  
Industry Level ◽  
Pluralistic Approach ◽  
The Right ◽  
Conditions Of Employment

The issue of organizational rights facing minority unions has been a quagmire since the advent of the Labour Relations Act 66 of 1995(hereinafter “the LRA”). This quagmire exists, notwithstanding the fact that the Constitution affords every trade union the right to engage in collective bargaining (s 23 of the Constitution, 1996). The acquisition of organizational rights by trade unions plays a crucial rolein as far as collective bargaining is concerned. It is through collective bargaining that unions are able to negotiate with employers regarding the terms and conditions of employment. Commentators have often viewed the LRA as favouring larger unions and as conferring clear advantages on unions with majority support at the industry level. Chapter III of the LRA regulates collective bargaining. Whereas this chapterostensibly promotes a pluralistic approach to organizational rights it is unequivocally biased towards majoritarianism. This is the case despite minority trade unions fulfilling an important role in the current labour system especially when it comes to the balance of powerin the employment arena. In light of the above, the legal quagmire faced by the minority unions in the quest for acquiring organisation rights in terms of the relevant provisions of the LRA is clearly illustrated by the decision in South African Post Office v Commissioner Nowosenetz No ((2013) 2 BLLR 216 (LC) (hereinafter “ the South African Post Office case”)).

scholarly journals Legal Pitfalls of Incompatibility in the Workplace: An Examination of the Landmark Ruling on Racism in Rustenburg Platinum Mine v SAEWA obo Meyer Bester 2018 (5) SA 78 (CC)

Obiter ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 41 (2) ◽  
pp. 429-435
Author(s):  
Konanani Happy Raligilia ◽  
Unathi Nxokweni
Keyword(s):  
South African ◽  
Focal Point ◽  
Good Practice ◽  
Case Note ◽  
African National Congress ◽  
Labour Law ◽  
Labour Relations ◽  
Racial Harassment ◽  
Contract Of Employment ◽  
Legislative Framework

In South African labour law, as is the position in other international jurisdictions, the contract of employment is founded on an employment relationship between employer and employee. This case note discusses the nature and scope of the implied term of trust and confidence in the relationship in relation to managerial employees, with particular emphasis on breach of fiduciary obligations as well as incompatibility (MacGregor “Racial Harassment in the Workplace: Context as Indicata SA Transport and Allied Workers Union obo Dlamini & Transnet Freight Rail” 2009 Industrial Law Journal 650). This obligation of mutual trust and confidence cuts both ways (Western Platinum Refinery Ltd v Hlebela (2015) 36 ILJ 2280) and means that the employer must not behave arbitrarily or unreasonably, or so as to destroy the necessary basis of mutual confidence (Malik v BCCI [1998] AC 20 35 and Woods v WM Car Services (Peterborough) Ltd 1981 IRLR 347).Since the dawn of democracy in 1994 and influenced by constitutional changes in government, South African labour law has been drastically transformed. The new government, led by the African National Congress, had to come up with a legislative framework to deal with racism. Although the Labour Relations Act 66 of 1995 (LRA) does not explicitly deal with the question of racism at work, the importance of forging harmonious employment relationships is covered in the misconduct and incapacity in Schedule 8 of the LRA (Code of Good Practice: Dismissal). To this day, racism at the workplace remains a scourge and for this reason this case note examines the Rustenburg Platinum Mine v SAEWA obo Bester 2018 (5) SA 78 (CC)) case as its focal point. The effect of racism requires that a balance be struck between an employer’s interest in managing its business as it sees fit and the employee’s interest in not being unfairly and improperly exploited.

scholarly journals Current Challenges of the Labour Law of Ukraine: On the Way to European Integration

2018 ◽  
Vol 27 ◽  
pp. 88-93
Author(s):  
Yana Simutina
Keyword(s):  
European Integration ◽  
Rapid Development ◽  
Radical Change ◽  
Legal Regulation ◽  
Fundamental Rights ◽  
Labour Law ◽  
Labour Relations ◽  
Labour Legislation ◽  
Atypical Employment ◽  
Definition Of

The article describes the main challenges facing labour law and its practice in modern conditions. In particular, the author concludes that the long and complex process of codifying the labour laws of Ukraine has, regrettably, not yet achieved its main objective – namely, to bring radical change from the old model of socialist labour. The draft Labor Code submitted for consideration would, in reality, introduces some cosmetic changes, which lack the ability to modernise Ukrainian labour law. It is emphasised that in the context of Ukraine’s European integration and the rapid development of innovative information technology, labour legislation should take into account and, in fact, legalise long-standing practices in atypical employment relationships, so as to ensure labour rights and guarantees for persons involved in such activities. The author presents various elements as necessary: revision to the legislative definition of an employment contract, further differentiation and clarification in the legal regulation of labour relations, and rejection of these relations’ ‘excessive regulation’. Also proposed is an approach that renders labour relations more flexible while maintaining and ensuring the fundamental rights of employees.

The architecture of modern anti-unionism in Canada: Class struggle and the erosion of workers’ collective freedoms

2018 ◽  
Vol 43 (3) ◽  
pp. 459-481
Author(s):  
Charles Smith ◽  
Andrew Stevens
Keyword(s):  
Collective Bargaining ◽  
Labour Law ◽  
Labour Movement ◽  
Labour Relations ◽  
The Past ◽  
Role Of The State ◽  
Private And Public ◽  
Labour Legislation ◽  
The Relationship

Over the past four decades, governments have backed away from the promotion of collective bargaining in Canada resulting in a tendency towards anti-unionism. Examining this new reality, this article investigates two interrelated trends in Canadian anti-unionism over the last two decades in an effort to conceptualize the role of the state in regulating labour relations. First, we investigate legislative attempts to undermine or eliminate the ability of workers to collectively bargain and strike. Second, the article unpacks the political economy of anti-unionism in the private sector by focusing on the role of lobby groups that have shaped labour legislation. These two interrelated threads allow us to expose the relationship between employers and governments, which has threatened the strength of organized labour in the private and public sector and shaped a uniquely Canadian anti-unionism. Finally, we conclude by examining both the strengths and limitations of the unique fight-back strategies used by the labour movement, which has sought to elevate aspects of Canadian labour law to be protected by the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. This, we argue, offers restrictive possibilities for advancing collective bargaining rights in the existing labour relations framework.

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